Maserati DOHC swap in 85 turbo Laser

[xtrempickup]

the axles are different than any other car made etc i was told. there are performance cals that Cindy and Rick D are selling for the Masi16V. I'll be sticking it in something, its got Rick D for aftermarket parts so if you really want to spend the cash, you can make a 600HP monster as Rick makes the parts to do it with.

[2.216vturbo]

Yeah +1 to what Extreme said, axles will not interchange, they are a whole different size on the inners. If you wanted to you *could* use the whole transmission and axles in the Laser with custom mounts and adapting the shifter from the TC as well. The axle 'outers' have the same splines and the overall dimension from hub to hub is the same on a Laser or a TC Masi. Hope you never need another clutch though...

But then again, I'm just using my Masi's for what was it Orthodonti, oh yeah, 'Garage Decoration'


Alan

[xtrempickup]

i love garage decorations that sound and goo faster than non decorations

[amcpacer]

Ok I will be getting the Maserati engine / transmission assembly with wiring computer and axles. I have to go get everything on tuesday.

Now the ideal setup that I want is to mate the cylinder head up to a common block 2500cc engine. Would the compression ratio be way too high with the stock 2.5 pistons? Are there any vendors out there currently selling forged 2.5 pistons that would have a close enough cc to use with this head? Perhaps using an extra thick copper head gasket. Since I can make custom calibrations it may not be too bad to make this a relatively high compression engine anyway.

Now from what I understand the crankshaft timing belt pulley needs to be square tooth. Can a square tooth pulley be pulled off an old 2.2 circa 1985 and bolted to the common block crank shaft?

Also I will need to find an internally gated holset turbocharger from a Dodge Ram Diesel. According to The Pope the stock IHI turbo is crap so an upgrade is a necessity. We do not want to make this thing perform poorly.

[The Pope]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amcpacer Ok I will be getting the Maserati engine / transmission assembly with wiring computer and axles. I have to go get everything on tuesday. Now the ideal setup that I want is to mate the cylinder head up to a common block 2500cc engine. Would the compression ratio be way too high with the stock 2.5 pistons? Are there any vendors out there currently selling forged 2.5 pistons that would have a close enough cc to use with this head? Perhaps using an extra thick copper head gasket. Since I can make custom calibrations it may not be too bad to make this a relatively high compression engine anyway. Now from what I understand the crankshaft timing belt pulley needs to be square tooth. Can a square tooth pulley be pulled off an old 2.2 circa 1985 and bolted to the common block crank shaft? Also I will need to find an internally gated holset turbocharger from a Dodge Ram Diesel. According to The Pope the stock IHI turbo is crap so an upgrade is a necessity. We do not want to make this thing perform poorly.

First what are you WHP goals? 550 WHP? Thats litterally more than what is usable on a street car, great for a stripped down full race car. 300 WHP and the car will fly, much more than that on the street is a waste, you'll spin the tires more than move the car. A S50 T04E will spool super fast on the Masi and make a hair over 400 WHP. Then comes fitting the Holset, the things is huge, making a custom header? The Masi header is like a TBI and will put the Holset right there on the firewall. A Holset is in my garage waiting for my Rampage, but it won't be a street car. A giant turbo can make you much slower on the street. Find out what you want to use the car for and we can help with a turbo choice. Doing a cal custom for it will really be nice

[xtrempickup]

a holset wouldnt mount to a factory Masi header anyways, totally different flange. The IHI turbo is an efficient turbo capable of at least 17psi and it spoils very fast. its not really junk. if you want anything other than it you need a custom header

[2.216vturbo]

What year is the donor TC? You may already have a common block if it is a '90. There is even a small chance that if you have an 89 built after July 88 it's a common block as well. Is it really worth it to you to build a 'whole new motor' with custom pistons when you may just be able to throw a crank/rods at waht you have. You will need to bush the small end of TII rods to work with the stock Masi pistons but they are VERY stout right from the factory. IMO the .330 lift cams of the Masi's are more suited to high RPMS, building a 2.5 takes away that ability to spin the motor to where it gets happy. Sometime reinventing the wheel is the hard way...

Alan

[amcpacer]

I think the TC donor was a 91. If it is a common block then does it use the forged common block crank shaft? Alan, when you say bush the small end do you mean press in a bushing?

[GLHNSLHT2]

The 16v masi uses it's own unique Forged crankshaft and rods.

[2.216vturbo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amcpacer I think the TC donor was a 91. If it is a common block then does it use the forged common block crank shaft? Alan, when you say bush the small end do you mean press in a bushing?

The 89 TC is the only FWD Mopar'ish car that could have come with any one of FOUR forged crankshafts.

Forged non common block
16V forged non common block
Forged common block
16V forged common block

But no, since we already know it is a DOHC car then it uses a specific crank/rods/pistons/bearing etc. So you can swap for a standard common block crank but the rods have a different sized piston pin (small end) so yes, you could use some TII rods and have them rebushed (pressed)

But like I said, you may be able to run what you have already, did youestablish if it truly spun a bearing and was it a main or a rod. Got pics yet?

The car is either an 89 or a 90, realistically speaking, there are no 91 DOHC TC's. THere is one and I've seen it but that was a VIP backdoor deal and dataplate calls it a 90 anyway.

Is the donor car gone??

Alan

[amcpacer]

I will get pictures when I pick it up this week. Last week I established the engine is seized up at cylinder number 3 between the crank shaft and connecting rod. The cylinders have no scoring. The owner is not really sure if it ran out of oil or if the pump malfunctioned. There is a slight amount of wear in the cylinders as I can feel the ridge at the top of the cylinder.

I do not plan on ever taking the car to the race track. I just want to beat some SRT-4 cars on the highway and get good fuel economy in the process. My car already has a home made 100 psi 2 stage water injection system.

[xtrempickup]

have you checked for the pump block off plate to rule Common or non common block?

[amcpacer]

OK I just picked up everything today. Got all of the vacuum lines complete, wiring harness, engine, and trans. Pretty much a complete package. I have already took apart the entire engine. It looks like the only ruined bearing is on cylinder number 3. The pistons and rings look great. That is one heavy engine block, my back is hurting now.

The block does not have a block-off plate for a fuel pump so it is most likely similar to a common block.

I think it is best to sell all of the parts on e-bay to fund a wicked T-2 conversion. I would like to do an exact copy of GLHNSLHT2s daytona TII setup. It sounds like it is plenty powerful and most of all it gets 40mpg. GLHNSLHT2 would you be willing to share the complete specifications of your car for me to copy?

Now regarding the selling of the TC engine the valve cover and intake manifold have flaking paint. The paint is wrinkle black. Does the flaking hurt the value of the items or will the buyers not even care because they will want to do their own paint?

[The Pope]

Quote:

Originally Posted by amcpacer OK I just picked up everything today. Got all of the vacuum lines complete, wiring harness, engine, and trans. Pretty much a complete package. I have already took apart the entire engine. It looks like the only ruined bearing is on cylinder number 3. The pistons and rings look great. That is one heavy engine block, my back is hurting now. The block does not have a block-off plate for a fuel pump so it is most likely similar to a common block. I think it is best to sell all of the parts on e-bay to fund a wicked T-2 conversion. I would like to do an exact copy of GLHNSLHT2s daytona TII setup. It sounds like it is plenty powerful and most of all it gets 40mpg. GLHNSLHT2 would you be willing to share the complete specifications of your car for me to copy? Now regarding the selling of the TC engine the valve cover and intake manifold have flaking paint. The paint is wrinkle black. Does the flaking hurt the value of the items or will the buyers not even care because they will want to do their own paint?

the engine is the easy part, need to buy a cal and wideband from him. The key to how the car runs. Jay is going to get some plenum matterial soon too Got paid lol Did you want to copy his current build or the old one though? Jays little tube header is "one of a kind"

The paint doesn't matter that much in the TC stuff. Most of it is just finding ANY PARTS in the first place lol.

[amcpacer]

I will have to search through his posts to see which setup is the most fuel efficient. Is that tube header really key for efficiency and power? I will wait for GLHNSLHT2 to chime in.

I am taking pictures of the parts right now.